Urban Governance in India and China: A Comparative View

The Quest for Good Urban Governance, 2015

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China's changing urban development processes and urban landscapes in the transition towards a more market-oriented economy have received extensive research attention in recent years. Relatively, the governing of Chinese cities is still underresearched. This article aims to analyse the forces released both inside and outside the formal socialist state system and the impacts on phenomenal restructuring of urban governance, especially at local levels. Marketisation has created new elements beyond the reach of state work-units that represent the state's 'hierarchical' control. The pillars of the socialist governing structure-the party-state, the work-units system and household registration-are shaken by these forces. The changes in the organisation of people, capital, production materials, infrastructure and space fundamentally demand new urban governance. Territorial organisations such as the municipality, urban districts, Street Of ce and Residents' Committees are reinvented and consolidated to restore a governable society. The devolution towards the base level and the reinvention of local communities re ect the state's attempt to reconsolidate its power to create a governable society as well as to cope with practical pressures such as the provision of social assistance to poor and aged residents, re-employment of laid-off workers and the management of ' oating' immigrants. The combination of new market elements and decentralised state apparatus has given rise to the entrepreneurial endeavour of China's governance. This research highlights the micro-foundation of the new urban governance in addition to the 'globalisation-capital mobility-city competitiveness' thesis.

The importance of efficient urban governance needs no elaboration in an increasingly urbanizing world. Cities with high population densities throw significant challenges of transportation, safety, urban revitalization, social inclusion and cohesion, environmental protection, water, air, energy, sanitation and climate changes which will magnify in the near future if not properly addressed now. These socioeconomic changes necessitate augmentation of urban finances for investment in well-planned urban development and to bring about reforms in governance to enforce efficient urban governance at all levels to cater to the needs of urbanites and to make cities inclusive, congestion-free, safe, resilient and sustainable in which all people have access to basic services, housing and mobility. The urban local governance structures, mechanism and arrangements should aim at facilitating the adoption and implementation of successful policies to meet the challenges of sustainable, safe and equitable urbanization. This book discusses measures to stimulate revitalization and foster better economic and social development through developing cooperation mechanism between local and national governments so that the challenges of urbanization can be best utilized as opportunities of innovation, economic growth and employment.

In India, urban areas need to improve for the country to achieve fast and sustained economic development. Despite the strong focus on urban reforms, in many ULBs, implementation of governance reforms is not adequate. In this context, this paper, reviews two initiatives and suggests a way forward.

Chinese Geographical Science, 2002

China's urban reforms have brought social progress and development, but a comprehensive national system of social welfare (for example, unemployment insurance, pensions, medical care and public housing) for new migrants from rural areas is lacking. One of the most remarkable changes in Chinese cities in the last decade was a change in social "equality", with the rise of new poverty both in individual communities and some social groups in urban society. However, there is little social assistance and public infrastructure for the migrants. Governments or communities or individual should pay attention to the control of new urban poverty and new slums. This paper consider that it is necessary to launch a successful policy, which include mainly: 1 ) accommodating urban growth through low-cost investment projects; 2) urban economy depends heavily on successful macroeconomic policy; 3) to broaden the three channels linking adjustment to the incidence of urban poverty; 4) to restructure urban economic based on the high or new technology; 5) to coordinate relationship between urban economic growth and environment management for sustainable development of Beijing's metropolitan fringe. KEY WORDS: urban challenges and problems; urban governance; urban policies CLC number: F129.9

This article analyses how urban governance in India has changed since the 1990s as a result of the interplay of three interlinked forces. The liberalization of the economy in 1991, the good governance discourse together with the decentralization program officially pronounced under the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 and the more recent urban reforms envisaged in the 2000s and institutionalized with launch of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) in 2005, affected urban governance in significant ways. Based on recent empirical observations in the city of Mumbai, this paper argues that the involvement of multiple players, namely parastatals, local contractors, private developers, non-government organizations (NGOs), citizen groups and community based organizations across sectors of urban governance since the 1990s, has led to contesting claims by different groups to the city's spaces and resources, articulating conflicting discourses and competing practices. These in turn have serious implications on the questions of accountability and inclusion in evolving urban governance policy and practice in contemporary India.

Australian Journal of Social Issues, 2020

The article describes the long history of urbanisation, including developments in four jurisdictionsthree in Greater China (the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan) and Australia. While each has its own history, all now face challenges associated with continuing urbanisation and the growth of very large cities. There are broadly similar economic forces at work, but differences in scale and differences in the "growth machines" involved and the institutional arrangements within which urban governance operates. The article explains the growing importance internationally of urban governance and the growing interest in the "performance" of cities. The authors then set out two case studies describing developments in urban governance around Shanghai and around Sydney. In both cases, the scale of big city growth is demanding both horizontal and vertical coordination, and processes that facilitate citizens and civil society participation. While the very different institutional arrangements in these jurisdictions have led to different urban governance arrangements, there are common challenges that have led to some common governance developments such as having a lead government with citywide and comprehensive public service responsibilities, and also having the national government play an increasingly active role in support.

volume is the first in a series of endeavors by the India China Institute at The New School, New York, to create a space for trilateral conversations on the emerging issues of globalization, urbanization, political economy, development and governance that can enrich and expand intellectual collaboration across diverse disciphnes in India, Chiru and the US, It presents shifting perspectives on urbanization and globalization in India and China over the past few decades, at the dawn of this new era when both countries are actively removing barriers to teach out to each other and the rest of the world. It is hoped that this volume will prove to be the front runner in stimulating productive dialogue that is bereft of preconceived notions and n^oncepdons and focused on asking the right questions and finding the more elusive answers. Academics, policy-makers, practitioners, professionals, journalists from India, China and the US have contributed to this compendium to provide an immensely enriching and insightful read for their brethren all over the vzorld. Contents About Starr Foundation and ICI Acknowledgements

Progress in Planning, 2010

Environment and Urbanization

This paper explains the reasons behind the growing social tension and increased number of conflicts in China after a good performance in meeting the Millennium Development Goals. In this paper, we map out the issues with old urbanization (1978–2014) and the problems unsolved by past policy, and analyse whether the new policy changes introduced by the New Urbanization Plan (2014–2020) may help to deal with those problems. We argue that the tensions that evolve into conflicts are often a result of unaddressed social anxiety. Using money to purchase social stability can only be part of the solution. There need to be more serious attempts to improve governance, which involve: improving multi-level governance and inter-regional coordination, enhancing policy transparency and rule by law, adjusting the level of redistribution, and integrating rural and urban community governance structures.